No passing zone

What it means

This pennant marks the start of a stretch where passing is prohibited, and its shape and position are part of the message: it is the only pennant in the sign system and it is mounted on the left side of the road, facing the driver who might be considering a pass. It backs up the solid yellow line already painted along the centre. The zones it defines are places where a passing manoeuvre cannot be completed safely within the sight distance available, such as curves, crests and junction approaches.

How it gets misread

Drivers sometimes think the pennant prohibits passing only for traffic moving in the direction it faces, and that oncoming drivers may pass. Others read it as applying just to trucks or to night driving. It ends passing for everyone in your direction for the length of the zone.

What to do

Stay in your lane and do not overtake while the pennant and the solid yellow line govern the road. Complete any planned pass well before the zone begins, where the centre line is broken, and if you are mid-pass as the zone approaches, return to your lane promptly rather than stretching the manoeuvre into it.

Practise this rule

• Double Yellow Lines: No Passing Either Way

  Two solid yellow lines are painted down the centre of a two-lane road. What do they mean?

More regulatory signs

• Railroad crossbuck →
• Stop →

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